No. 20 GW Men's Water Polo Sweeps First Day of Bison Invite

Colonials Rally Versus Fordham, Rout SIU

LEWISBURG, Pa. - The No. 20 George Washington men's water polo team extended its winning streak to three with a pair of victories on the first day of the Bison Invitational at Bucknell's Kinney Natatorium. The Colonials rallied for an 8-7 come-from-behind win over Fordham, then routed Salem International, 20-5.

GW (4-1) jumped out to a 2-0 lead after just 2:06 of action against Fordham in the first game of the day, but the Rams tied it at the end of the quarter. The Colonials regained a 3-2 advantage midway through the second, but Fordham rattled off three in a row and led, 5-3, at halftime.

The Rams extended their lead to 6-3 at the start of the third before three straight GW markers evened the score. Fordham, however, found the back of the cage with 1:08 remaining in the period for a 7-6 lead after three.

GW's defense clamped down in the fourth and blanked the Rams while senior Ridvan Pehlivan scored twice, tying the game 38 seconds into the quarter and scoring the game-winner with 2:55 left as the Colonials rallied for the 8-7 victory.

"Fordham's defense did a really good job of keeping us in check in the first half - their goalie had an outstanding game - but we clamped down on defense in the second half and chipped away," said Head Coach Scott Reed. "Then our defense really took over in the fourth quarter and shut them out."

Pehlivan led GW with four goals, while four Colonials each scored one. Sophomore goalkeeper Sander Profaci made seven saves in the cage, and junior Bogdan Petkovic recorded three assists and five steals.

In the second game of the day, GW took control from the start, outscoring Salem International 6-0 in the first quarter. The Colonials owned a 10-2 halftime lead, then dominated the third period, 8-0, for an 18-2 advantage after three and a 20-5 win.

Junior Alec Sedlachek, sophomore Dennis Gut and freshman Ryan Michalko each notched hat tricks to lead the Colonials, as Michalko and classmates Joe Behun (2) and Noah McKinnie Braun (1) all scored their first goals of their career. Gut added five assists for a career-high eight points in the game to go with four steals, while Braun chipped in four assists and three steals and junior goalkeeper Connor Dillon stopped seven shots.

"Once we were able to put some points on the board we just took complete control and didn't give SIU any real opportunity to get in the game," said Coach Reed. "It was a great defensive effort and a nice way to finish off the day."